Letters to the Editor 11-27-11

Monday

Nov 28, 2011 at 7:28 AMNov 28, 2011 at 7:32 AM

The real world

The news media has been attempting to gin up considerable controversy by repeatedly showing footage of an officer using pepper spray on protesters at a Southern California University, and reporting that two officers are under investigation for excessive use of force. In addition, the chancellor of that university has publicly stated that she is utterly appalled that pepper spray was used against the protesters, as if they were innocent victims who were set upon by sadistic, bloodthirsty police.

The purpose of the protests at the university was confrontation, both with the system and with those who run it. One female student was interviewed on camera and plainly said so. Sitting down and locking arms together forces the officers to use some kind of physical force to overcome that resistance in order to make an arrest. Beating on them may, in the end, break them apart, but will certainly cause injury. The use of pepper spray, while it causes such discomfort and distraction that resistance and combativeness are taken out of the equation (in most cases), it is a non-lethal tool that has no long lasting ill effects.

In my opinion, the officers, instead of being investigated, should be commended for their restraint, in that they chose to use pepper spray in lieu of physical force to accomplish what they were directed to do. The statement by the chancellor showed her to be completely out of touch with reality. Her numerous college and university degrees may stand her in good stead in the world of liberal academia, but it is an example of how our system of higher education is letting our youth down by not instilling in them the gift of critical thinking and to think for themselves in the real world.

Gabriel Portillo

Hesperia

•

To assert, as Timothy Mayer does ("False Claims," Letters, Nov. 20), that John Nolte "made up" over 300 individual instances of OWS violence is ludicrous on its face. One only has to Google "OWS violence" to see the true face of the movement.

How any rational and fair-minded person can believe that OWS is a peaceful movement defies common sense. If that were the case, then why are Blue State mayors now cracking down on the movement? Could it be that after Obama stoked the movement, these mayors now have to bring it under control? Costing constituents millions of dollars in clean-up costs, medical and police overtime, these mayors have now learned to be careful what they wish for. For socialist Jean Quan, mayor of Oakland, to clear out Occupy Oakland, speaks volumes as to just how violent the protesters became.

Since Obama cannot run on his record, his only choice is to divide and conquer, fomenting class warfare through words and deeds. The argument that the rich don't pay their fair share has been debunked so many times as to not warrant debate. The issue is jobs, jobs and more jobs. What Obama should tell OWS is to get a job, and instead of Occupying Wall Street, occupy a desk.

Tom Jahnke

Apple Valley

Ignoring conflict of interest

Some weeks back I read that the Supreme Court may have issues with the upcoming ObamaCare matter next year. The article spoke to one or perhaps two of the justices needing to recuse themselves due to past associations with the matter that will be coming to the court. That got me thinking.

I find that in California, at the state level, we have a matter before the state Board of Education where a member of the board has, as her day job, employment as a lobbyist for the California Teachers Association. There has been a little news interest in the state, but none that has warranted making it a front burner issue.

But why should we? Look how just three of the nine boards of education in the Victor Valley flaunt the conflict of interest provisions in a vague state code that while telling us that board members must file annually property and financial background statements while in office, they obviously wink when it comes to what the following list indicates:

• The president of the Victor Elementary board is a teacher in the Victor Valley High School District

• The president of the Victor Valley high school board is a teacher in the Victor Elementary District

• The president of the Adelanto Elementary board is a teacher in the Victor Valley High School District

• The president of the Victor Valley High School board is married to a member of the Victor Elementary board where she teaches

• In both Victor Valley High and Victor Elementary, four of five board members are employees or former employees of local school districts.

A basic tenet of politics is that officials must not vote where there is a "conflict of interest," that is, what they're voting on will benefit them. We both know that most school board members are teachers, often currently employed by neighboring districts. When we're negotiating their pay, a primary measure is what neighboring districts make. Doesn't it seem like a teacher in a neighboring district would benefit by giving teachers in other districts raises?

I'm afraid, in both biology and politics, inbreeding leads to retardation. And more to the point, can their decisions regarding their fellow teachers be made in an impartial manner?

Tom Pinard

Wrightwood

Protecting the investment

Re: "CC&Rs and secret ballots" (Chris Coleman, Letters, Nov. 20).

Mr. Coleman has spent considerable effort fighting against the main reason most people choose to live in Spring Valley Lake — an expectation that we will always have a Homeowners Association to help protect our investment.

Mr. Coleman's claim that the ballot process is not secret is absolutely wrong. At no time has the Spring Valley Lake staff, CC&R Committee or board had access to any ballot mailing or return information. The only group that has access to that information is the independent Inspector of Elections.

The claim that the board authorized an extension to the election because a 55 percent yes vote was not reached is also wrong. The Association has no way of knowing how many yes votes have been cast, since ballots are not opened until Dec. 3. When the decision was made to extend the voting period, only about 1,800 ballots had been received by election officials — not enough to ensure a fair referendum on the issue. The extension and second mailing was to give more homeowners an opportunity to participate in the election process.

Mr. Coleman's claim that "unfair tactics" have been used in this election process is laughable. Apparently, he doesn't like the fact that citizens can campaign for something they believe in. It's OK in America to call people during political campaigns and ask for their support. It's also OK to stand in front of the U.S. Post Office and ask people to vote yes. It's even OK to publish facts about what will happen to our community if our Association is dissolved.

Scott Eckert

Spring Valley Lake

Fair and balanced

Darrel Hagen ("Leaning right," Letters, Nov. 20) misses the point about the frustration felt by many Daily Press readers over the paper's bias. It's not about some poll, it's about the paper's refusal to acknowledge the diversity of people and opinions in the High Desert and the mistaken assumption that we all only want to hear opinions that coincide with those of the Daily Press.

The Daily Press was once an outstanding newspaper that gave fair and balanced coverage of the events in the High Desert and provided a wide variety of opinions and views to its readers. I believe there are many in the High Desert that would love to see that again.